Abnormality diagnosis apparatus for particulate filter

ABSTRACT

Embodiments of the present disclosure may improve the accuracy of abnormality diagnosis of a particulate filter using the output value of a particulate matter (PM) sensor provided in an exhaust passage. A time when deposition of PM between electrodes of the PM sensor is restarted after completion of a sensor recovery process may be specified as a PM deposition restart time. A process of diagnosing an abnormality of a filter based on the output value of the PM sensor at a first determination time after the PM deposition restart time may be specified as a filter diagnosis process. To determine, whether the filter diagnosis process is to be performed, a change rate of the output value of the PM sensor in a time period from the PM deposition restart time to a predetermined second determination time before the first determination time, may be compared with a threshold value.

This nonprovisional patent application is based on and claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2015-076057 filed on Apr. 2, 2015, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to an abnormality diagnosis apparatus for a particulate filter that is provided in an exhaust passage of an internal combustion engine to trap PM (particulate matter) included in the exhaust gas.

Description of Background Art

There is a known technique to provide a particulate filter (which hereinafter may be simply referred to as “filter”) that is configured to trap PM included in the exhaust gas, in an exhaust passage of an internal combustion engine. However, in such a technique, failure such as erosion or breakage may occur in the filter. The occurrence of such a failure increases the amount of PM that is not trapped by the filter but flows out of the filter. The occurrence of such a failure in the filter or the occurrence of an abnormality of the filter, for example, detachment of the filter from the exhaust passage, leads to an increase in PM released to the atmosphere. A proposed technique accordingly provides a PM sensor downstream of the filter in the exhaust passage and diagnoses an abnormality of the filter based on the output value of the PM sensor. A known configuration of the PM sensor used for abnormality diagnosis of the filter has a pair of electrodes as a sensor element and outputs a signal corresponding to the amount of PM depositing between the electrodes.

A technique disclosed in Patent Literature 1 compares an output value of a PM sensor provided downstream of a filter in an exhaust passage with an estimated value of a deposition amount of PM in the PM sensor to determine the presence or the absence of a failure in the filter. The technique described in Patent Literature 1 estimates a flow-out amount of PM from the filter on the assumption that the filter is in a predetermined state, and calculates an estimated value of the deposition amount of PM in the PM sensor based on the integrated value of the estimated flow-out amount of PM. The state of the filter may be detected by comparing the estimated value of the deposition amount of PM with the actual output value of the PM sensor.

PATENT LITERATURE

Patent Literature 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-179467A.

SUMMARY Technical Problem

As described above, the occurrence of a failure in the filter can increase the flow-out amount of PM from the filter. This can lead to an increase in amount of PM trapped between the electrodes of the PM sensor that is provided downstream of the filter in the exhaust passage. This may provide the larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor, compared with that deposition amount of PM in the normal state of the filter. The same applies to the case where the filter is detached from the exhaust passage. Abnormality diagnosis of the filter can thus be performed, based on the output value of the PM sensor in a predetermined time period.

There is a likelihood that conductive materials other than PM as the original detection object (hereinafter referred to as extraneous substances) are trapped between the electrodes of the PM sensor. Even in the normal state of the filter, such extraneous substances may be trapped between the electrodes of the PM sensor. Trapping the extraneous substances between the electrodes of the PM sensor also varies the output value of the PM sensor. In the case of abnormality diagnosis of the filter based on the output value of the PM sensor in the state that extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes of the PM sensor, there is a likelihood of wrong diagnosis that the filter is abnormal, despite that the filter is actually normal.

Embodiments of the present disclosure may improve the accuracy of abnormality diagnosis of a filter using the output value of a PM sensor provided downstream of the filter in an exhaust passage.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a time when deposition of PM between electrodes of the PM sensor is restarted after completion of a sensor recovery process may be specified as a PM deposition restart time. A process of diagnosing an abnormality of a filter based on the output value of the PM sensor at a first determination time after the PM deposition restart time may be specified as a filter diagnosis process. It can be determined whether the filter diagnosis process is to be performed or not by comparing a change rate of the output value of the PM sensor in a time period from the PM deposition restart time to a predetermined second determination time before the first determination time with a threshold value.

More specifically, according to one aspect of the present disclosure, there may be provided an abnormality diagnosis apparatus for a particulate filter that is provided in an exhaust passage of an internal combustion engine to trap PM included in exhaust gas. The abnormality diagnosis apparatus may comprise: a PM sensor that is provided downstream of the particulate filter in the exhaust passage and is configured to have a pair of electrodes as a sensor element and output a signal corresponding to a deposition amount of PM between the electrodes when electrical continuity is established between the electrodes by deposition of PM between the electrodes, the PM sensor being configured such that a larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes provides a higher variation in output value of the PM sensor relative to an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes; a controller comprising at least one processor configured to perform a sensor recovery process and a filter diagnosis process, the sensor recovery process being a process of removing PM depositing between the electrodes of the PM sensor, the filter diagnosis process being a process of diagnosing an abnormality of the particulate filter based on an output value of the PM sensor at a predetermined first determination time after a predetermined PM deposition restart time that is a time when deposition of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor is restarted after completion of the sensor recovery process; and a monitor unit that is configured to continuously monitor an output signal of the PM sensor after the PM deposition restart time. An estimated value of the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor on the assumption that the particulate filter is in a predetermined reference state may be specified as a reference deposition amount of PM. A variation in output value of the PM sensor monitored by the monitor unit per unit increase in reference deposition amount of PM or a variation in output value of the PM sensor monitored by the monitor unit per unit time may be specified as a sensor output change rate. When the sensor output change rate becomes higher than a predetermined determination change rate in a time period from the PM deposition restart time to a predetermined second determination time prior to the first determination time, the filter diagnosis process by the controller may not be performed. When the sensor output change rate does not become higher than the predetermined determination change rate in the time period from the PM deposition restart time to the second determination time, the filter diagnosis process by the controller may be performed irrespective of the sensor output change rate after the second determination time.

In the PM sensor of the present disclosure, when the amount of PM depositing between the electrodes as the sensor element becomes equal to or larger than a predetermined amount, electrical continuity may be established between the electrodes by deposition of PM. The deposition amount of PM between the electrodes when electrical continuity is established between the electrodes of the PM sensor by deposition of PM is referred to as “effective deposition amount of PM”. When the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes becomes equal to or larger than the effective deposition amount of PM, the PM sensor may generate an output value corresponding to the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes. In the PM sensor configured to generate an output value that reflects the value of electric current flowing between the electrodes, the output value of the PM sensor may increase with an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes. In the PM sensor configured to generate an output value that reflects the resistance value between the electrodes, on the other hand, the output value of the PM sensor may decrease with an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes. The PM sensor of the present disclosure may have either of these output characteristics, as long as the PM sensor is configured to output a signal corresponding to the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes. The larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes may provide the higher rate of decrease in electric resistance between the electrodes relative to the increase of the deposition amount of PM and provides the higher rate of increase in electric current flowing between the electrodes. Whether the PM sensor is configured to generate the output value that reflects the resistance value between the electrodes or is configured to generate the output value that reflects the value of electric current flowing between the electrodes, the larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes may provide the higher variation in output value of the PM sensor relative to the increase of the deposition amount of PM.

When the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes reaches the effective deposition amount of PM and is then gradually increased by continuation of trapping PM, the output value of the PM sensor may be gradually varied with the increase in deposition amount of PM. When extraneous substances as well as PM is trapped between the electrodes of the PM sensor, electrical continuity may be established between the electrodes by the trapped extraneous substances to abruptly decrease the resistance value between the electrodes. In this case, the output value of the PM sensor may be drastically varied, compared with the case where the output value of the PM sensor is varied with a gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes by trapping PM between the electrodes. In other words, when the output value of the PM sensor is abruptly varied, there may be a high possibility that extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes of the PM sensor.

In the abnormality diagnosis apparatus of the above aspect, the monitor unit may work to continuously monitor the output signal of the PM sensor after the PM deposition restart time. The PM deposition restart time denotes a time when deposition of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor is restarted after completion of the sensor recovery process by the controller.

The estimated value of the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor on the assumption that the filter is in the predetermined reference state may be specified as the reference deposition amount of PM. The different state of the filter may provide the different flow rate of PM from the filter. A change in flow rate of PM from the filter may lead to a change in amount of PM trapped between the electrodes of the PM sensor and may result in changing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes. The reference state may denote a state of the filter assumed for estimation of the reference deposition amount of PM.

The variation in output value of the PM sensor per unit increase of the reference deposition amount of PM or the variation in output value of the PM sensor per unit time may be specified as the sensor output change rate. When the output value of the PM sensor is drastically varied by trapping extraneous substances between the electrodes of the PM sensor as described above, this can lead to an increase in sensor output change rate. The abnormality diagnosis apparatus of the above aspect accordingly may compare the sensor output change rate after the PM deposition restart time but before the first determination time with the determination change rate to determine whether the filter diagnosis process by the controller is to be performed or not.

The determination change rate can be used as a threshold value for distinguishing whether the variation in output value of the PM sensor is to be attributed to the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes or is to be attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes. Even in the case where the output value of the PM sensor is gradually varied by the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes, the sensor output change rate may not be consistently constant. The larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes may provide the higher rate of decrease in resistance value between the electrodes relative to the increase in deposition amount of PM. The larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes can provide the higher rate of increase in electric current flowing between the electrodes relative to the increase in deposition amount of PM. Accordingly, the larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes may provide the higher variation in output value of the PM sensor relative to the increase in deposition amount of PM. After the PM deposition restart time, the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes may be gradually increased by continuously trapping PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor. Even when substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes, the sensor output change rate may be thus gradually increased with an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes.

In the state with a large amount of PM depositing between the electrodes of the PM sensor, even when substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes, the sensor output change rate in the case where the output value of the PM sensor is varied by increasing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes may exceed the determination change rate. In this case, the filter diagnosis process by the controller can be determined to be not performed, despite that substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes of the PM sensor. After the PM deposition restart time, the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor generally increases with time, i.e, at the time closer to the first determination time.

In the abnormality diagnosis apparatus of the above aspect, when the sensor output change rate becomes higher than the predetermined determination change rate in the time period from the PM deposition restart time to the predetermined second determination time prior to the first determination time, the filter diagnosis process by the controller may not be performed. In the time period from the PM deposition restart time to the second determination time, the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor is expected to be less than the deposition amount of PM after the second determination time. In this time period, it can thus be distinguishable whether the variation in output value of the PM sensor is to be attributed to the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes or is to be attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes, with high accuracy based on the sensor output change rate. In other words, when the sensor output change rate becomes higher than the predetermined determination change rate in this time period, it may be determinable that there is a high possibility that extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes. In this case, the filter diagnosis process can be determined to be not performed. This can reduce wrong diagnosis of an abnormality of the filter, due to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes of the PM sensor, despite that the filter is actually normal. This may improve the accuracy of abnormality diagnosis of the filter using the output value of the PM sensor.

When the sensor output change rate does not become higher than the predetermined determination change rate in the time period from the PM deposition restart time to the second determination time, on the other hand, there may be a high possibility that substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes. It is also expected that the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor is relatively large after the second determination time. After the second determination time, it accordingly may be difficult to distinguish whether the variation in output value of the PM sensor is to be attributed to the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes or is to be attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes, with high accuracy based on the sensor output change rate. When the sensor output change rate does not become higher than the determination change rate in the time period from the PM deposition restart time to the second determination time, the filter diagnosis process by the controller may be performed, irrespective of the sensor output change rate after the second determination time. This can suppress execution of abnormality diagnosis of the filter from being unnecessarily prohibited. This may result in suppressing reduction of the execution frequency of abnormality diagnosis of the filter beyond necessity.

In the abnormality diagnosis apparatus of the above aspect, the first determination time may be a time when the reference deposition amount of PM reaches a predetermined first determination PM deposition amount. The second determination time may be a time when the reference deposition amount of PM reaches a predetermined second determination PM deposition amount. In this aspect, the second determination PM deposition amount may be less than the first determination PM deposition amount.

In the abnormality diagnosis apparatus of the above aspect, the first determination time may be a time when the reference deposition amount of PM reaches a predetermined first determination PM deposition amount. An output value of the PM sensor when the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes is a predetermined second determination PM deposition amount that is less than the first determination PM deposition amount may be specified as a determination output value. When the output value of the PM sensor reaches the determination output value in a time period from the PM deposition restart time to the first determination time, a time when the output value of the PM sensor reaches the determination output value may be specified as the second determination time.

The abnormality diagnosis apparatus for the filter according to the above aspect of the invention may further include a differential pressure sensor that is configured to output a signal corresponding to a difference in exhaust pressure between upstream and downstream of the filter. And, the controller may further perform a filter recovery process, the filter recovery process being a process of removing PM depositing on the particulate filter. In this aspect, a state of the filter may be estimated based on an output value of the differential pressure sensor at a time of completion of the filter recovery process performed prior to execution of the sensor recovery process. The reference deposition amount of PM may be estimated on the assumption that the filter is in the estimated state specified as the reference state. This allows for estimation of the reference deposition amount of PM on the assumption that the state of the filter is close to the actual state to some extent. In this aspect, the sensor output change rate may be a variation in output value of the PM sensor monitored by the monitor unit per unit increase of the reference deposition amount of PM. This can enable the variation in output value of the PM sensor attributed to the gradual increase of the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes to be distinguished from the variation in output value of the PM sensor attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes, with the higher accuracy based on the sensor output change rate.

The above aspects of the present disclosure can improve the accuracy of abnormality diagnosis of the filter using the output value of the PM sensor provided downstream of the filter in the exhaust passage. This can also suppress reduction of the execution frequency of filter abnormality diagnosis beyond necessity. Further features of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the attached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a first diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of an internal combustion engine and its intake and exhaust system according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of a PM sensor according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between the deposition amount of PM between electrodes of the PM sensor and the output value of the PM sensor according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a variation in output value of the PM sensor after a voltage applying time according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is diagrams illustrating variations in output value of the PM sensor and variations in sensor output change rate after the voltage applying time according to an embodiment of the present disclosure referred to as Embodiment 1;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow of filter abnormality diagnosis according to Embodiment 1;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a flow of determination process to determine whether execution of a filter diagnosis process is to be prohibited or not according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 is diagrams illustrating variations in output value of the PM sensor and variations in sensor output change rate after the voltage applying time according to an embodiments of the present disclosure referred to as Embodiment 2;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a flow of filter abnormality diagnosis according to Embodiment 2; and

FIG. 10 is a second diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of an internal combustion engine and its intake and exhaust system according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following describes embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the drawings. The dimensions, the materials, the shapes, the positional relationships and the like of the respective components described in the following embodiments are only for the purpose of illustration and not intended at all to limit the scope of the present disclosure to such specific descriptions.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of an internal combustion engine 1 and its intake and exhaust system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, referred to as Embodiment 1.

The internal combustion engine 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a compression ignition internal combustion engine, such as a diesel engine, using light oil as fuel. The internal combustion engine 1 may alternatively be a spark ignition internal combustion engine using gasoline or the like as fuel.

The internal combustion engine 1 includes a fuel injection valve 3 that is configured to inject the fuel into a cylinder 2. In the case of the internal combustion engine 1 provided as the spark ignition internal combustion engine, the fuel injection valve 3 may be configured to inject the fuel into an intake port.

The internal combustion engine 1 is connected with an intake passage 4. The intake passage 4 is provided with an air flow meter 40 and an intake throttle valve 41. The air flow meter 40 is configured to output an electric signal corresponding to the amount, such as mass, of the intake air flowing in the intake passage 4. The intake throttle valve 41 is placed downstream of the air flow meter 40 in the intake passage 4. The intake throttle valve 41 is configured to change the passage cross-sectional area of the intake passage 4 and thereby regulate the amount of the air taken into the internal combustion engine 1.

The internal combustion engine 1 is also connected with an exhaust passage 5. The exhaust passage 5 is provided with an oxidation catalyst 50 and a particulate filter (hereinafter simply referred to as “filter”) 51. The filter 51 is placed downstream of the oxidation catalyst 50 in the exhaust passage 5. The filter 51 is a wall-flow filter that is made of a porous base material and is configured to trap PM included in the exhaust gas.

A fuel addition valve 52 is placed upstream of the oxidation catalyst 50 in the exhaust passage 5. The fuel addition valve 52 is configured to add the fuel to the exhaust gas flowing in the exhaust passage 5. The exhaust passage 5 is also provided with a temperature sensor 54 and a PM sensor 55 that are located downstream of the filter 51. The temperature sensor 54 is configured to output an electric signal corresponding to the temperature of the exhaust gas. The PM sensor 55 is configured to output an electric signal relating to the amount of PM flowing out of the filter 51.

The schematic configuration of the PM sensor 55 is described with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the schematic configuration of the PM sensor 55. The PM sensor 55 is an electrode-based PM sensor. The PM sensor 55 includes only one set of electrodes in the illustrated example of FIG. 2 but may include multiple sets of electrodes.

The PM sensor 55 includes a sensor element 553, an ammeter 554, a heater 555 and a cover 556. The sensor element 553 is configured by a pair of electrodes 551 and 552 that are placed away from each other on a surface of a plate-like insulator 550. The ammeter 554 is configured to measure the electric current flowing between the electrodes 551 and 552. The heater 555 is an electric heater placed on a rear face of the insulator 550. The cover 556 is provided to cover the sensor element 553. The cover 556 has a plurality of through holes 557 formed therein. Electric power is supplied from an external power source 60 to the electrodes 551 and 552 and the heater 555 of the PM sensor 55. The PM sensor 55 generates an output value that reflects the value of electric current measured by the ammeter 554. The output value of the PM sensor 55 is input into a monitor unit 101 of an ECU 10. According to this embodiment, the output value of the PM sensor 55 may thus be continuously monitored by the monitor unit 101 of the ECU 10. In the case where the PM sensor 55 is provided with a sensor control unit (SCU) of controlling the PM sensor 55, the SCU may include a monitor unit configured to continuously monitor the output value of the PM sensor 55. The SCU may be programmed to perform functions and processes disclosed herein.

In the state that the PM sensor 55 having the above configuration is mounted to the exhaust passage 5, part of the exhaust gas flowing in the exhaust passage 5 flows into the cover 556 via the through holes 557. PM included in the exhaust gas flowing into the cover 556 is trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552. Trapping PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is accelerated by applying a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552.

The following describes the relationship between the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 and the output value of the PM sensor 55 with reference to FIG. 3. The abscissa of FIG. 3 shows the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552, and the ordinate of FIG. 3 shows the output value of the PM sensor 55. Trapping PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 results in gradually increasing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. In the state that a voltage is applied between the electrodes 551 and 552, deposition of a predetermined amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 such as to connect from one electrode 551 to the other electrode 552 provides electrical continuity between the electrodes 551 and 552, due to the electrical conductivity of PM. When the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is less than the predetermined amount, however, there is no electrical continuity between the electrodes 551 and 552. The deposition amount of PM that provides electrical continuity between the electrodes 551 and 552 is hereinafter referred to as “effective deposition amount of PM”.

As shown in FIG. 3, there is no electrical continuity between the electrodes 551 and 552 until the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 reaches the effective deposition amount of PM, so that the output value of the PM sensor 55 is equal to zero. When the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 reaches the effective deposition amount of PM, the output value of the PM sensor 55 becomes greater than zero. After the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 reaches the effective deposition amount of PM, the electric resistance between the electrodes 551 and 552 decreases with an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. This results in increasing the electric current flowing between the electrodes 551 and 552. The output value of the PM sensor 55 accordingly increases with an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. In the description below, the time when the output value of the PM sensor 55 starts increasing from zero is called “output starting time”. The larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 provides the higher rate of decrease in electric resistance between the electrodes 551 and 552 relative to the increase in deposition amount of PM and thereby provides the higher rate of increase in electric current flowing between the electrodes 551 and 552. The larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 accordingly provides the higher rate of increase in output value of the PM sensor 55 relative to the increase in deposition amount of PM.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the internal combustion engine 1 is provided with the electronic control unit (ECU) 10. The ECU 10 is a unit serving to control, for example, the operating conditions of the internal combustion engine 1. The ECU 10 is electrically connected with various sensors including an accelerator positions sensor 7 and a crank position sensor 8, in addition to the air flow meter 40, the temperature sensor 54 and the PM sensor 55 described above. The accelerator position sensor 7 is provided as a sensor that outputs an electric signal related to the operation amount (e.g., accelerator position) of an accelerator pedal (not shown). The crank position sensor 8 is provided as a sensor that outputs an electric signal related to the rotational position of an output shaft (e.g., the crankshaft) of the internal combustion engine 1. The output signals of these sensors are input into the ECU 10. The ECU 10 is also electrically connected with various devices such as the fuel injection valve 3, the intake air throttle valve 41 and the fuel addition valve 52 described above. The ECU 10 controls the above various devices, based on the output signals from the above various sensors, and may be programmed to perform the functions and processes disclosed herein. For example, the ECU 10 performs a filter recovery process to remove PM depositing on the filter 51 by addition of the fuel by the fuel addition valve 52. The filter recovery process increases the temperature of the filter 51 with the heat generated by oxidation of the fuel added by the fuel addition valve 52 in the oxidation catalyst 50. This results in oxidizing and removing PM depositing on the filter 51.

A failure such as breakage or erosion may occur in the filter 51 due to, for example, a temperature rise during the above filter recovery process. Such a failure occurring in the filter 51 or an abnormality of filter, for example, detachment of the filter 51 from the exhaust passage 5, increases PM released to the atmosphere. Filter abnormality diagnosis may therefore be performed to determine whether the filter has any abnormality, based on the output value of the PM sensor 55. The following describes a procedure of filter abnormality diagnosis according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

The procedure of filter abnormality diagnosis may first perform the sensor recovery process, in order to remove PM depositing between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. More specifically, electric power is supplied from the power source 60 to the heater 555, and the heater 555 then heats the sensor element 553. This results in oxidizing and removing PM depositing between the electrodes 551 and 552. In the sensor recovery process, the temperature of the sensor element 553 is controlled to a temperature that allows for oxidation of PM by adjusting the supply amount of electric power to the heater 555.

After performing the sensor recovery process to remove PM depositing between the electrodes 551 and 552, the procedure subsequently starts applying a voltage from the power source 60 to the electrodes 551 and 552. In the description below, the time when applying a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 is started is called “voltage applying time.” The electrodes 551 and 552 have high temperature for some time after completion of the sensor recovery process. A cooling time period for cooling down the electrodes 551 and 552 may thus be provided between completion of the sensor recovery process and the voltage applying time.

As described above, applying a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 accelerates trapping PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. According to this embodiment, the voltage applying time thus corresponds to the PM deposition restart time of the invention. According to this embodiment, applying a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 may be started during the sensor recovery process. In this case, the time when the sensor recovery process is completed (i.e., the time when power supply to the heater 555 is stopped) may be specified as the PM deposition restart time of the invention. The time when a predetermined time period for determining that the temperature of the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 is decreased to such a degree that does not oxidize the trapped PM has elapsed since completion of the sensor recovery process may be specified as the PM deposition restart time of the invention.

The following describes a behavior of the output value of the PM sensor 55 after a start of applying a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 after the voltage applying time. The abscissa of FIG. 4 shows a reference deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 after the voltage applying time, and the ordinate of FIG. 4 shows the output value of the PM sensor 55.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the reference deposition amount of PM is an estimated value on the assumption that the filter 51 is in a reference failure state. The reference failure state denotes a state of a slightest failure among the states that the filter 51 is to be determined as abnormal by filter abnormality diagnosis. Even in the state that the filter 51 deteriorates to some extent, when the deteriorating state is better than the reference failure state, the filter 51 is determined as normal by filter abnormality diagnosis. The reference deposition amount of PM is calculated by estimating the amount of PM trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 (hereinafter simply referred to as “trapped amount of PM”) on the assumption that the filter 51 is in the reference failure state and integrating the estimated value of the trapped amount of PM. Even in the case where the state of the filter 51 itself is unchanged, the amount of PM flowing out of the filter 51 is varied according to the operating conditions of the internal combustion engine 1 (for example, the amount of fuel injection from the fuel injection valve 3 and the flow rate of the exhaust gas) and the deposition amount of PM on the filter 51. The ratio of the amount of PM trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 to the amount of PM included in the exhaust gas is also varied according to the flow rate of the exhaust gas. Estimation of the trapped amount of PM on the assumption that the filter 51 is in the reference failure state should accordingly take into account the operating conditions of the internal combustion engine 1 and the deposition amount of PM on the filter 51. Any known method may be employed to concretely calculate the reference deposition amount of PM.

In the graph of FIG. 4, a curve L1 shows a variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 in the normal state of the filter 51, and a curve L2 shows a variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 in the failed state of the filter 51. A variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 in the state that the filter 51 is detached from the exhaust passage 5 shows a similar tendency to the variation in the failed state of the filter 51 relative to the variation in the normal state of the filter 51. In the graph of FIG. 4, Qs1 represents a reference deposition amount of PM at the output starting time in the normal state of the filter 51, and Qs2 represents a reference deposition amount of PM at the output starting time in the failed state of the filter 51. The behavior of the output value of the PM sensor 55 as shown in FIG. 4 may be monitored by the monitor unit 101 of the ECU 10.

A failure of the filter 51 decreases the PM trapping efficiency of the filter 51. This results in increasing the amount of PM flowing out of the filter 51 per unit time (flow-out amount of PM). This accordingly increases the amount of PM that reaches the PM sensor 55 and is trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552. This leads to a higher increase rate of the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. As a result, in the failed state of the filter 51, the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 reaches the effective deposition amount of PM earlier than in the normal state of the filter 51. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 4, the failed state of the filter 51 has a shorter time period from the voltage applying time to the output starting time than the normal state of the filter 51 (Qs2<Qs1). The failed state of the filter 51 also has a higher increase rate of the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 after the output starting time than the normal state of the filter 51. The failed state of the filter 51 accordingly has a higher rate of change of the sensor output after the output starting time than the normal state of the filter 51 as shown in FIG. 4. The rate of change of the sensor output denotes an increase rate of the output value of the PM sensor 55 per unit increase of the reference deposition amount of PM.

There is a difference in behavior of the output value of the PM sensor 55 between the normal state of the filter 51 and the abnormal state of the filter 51 as described above. As a result, the abnormal state of the filter 51 provides a larger output value of the PM sensor 55 after elapse of a predetermined time period since the voltage applying time than the normal state of the filter 51. Accordingly, the procedure of filter abnormality diagnosis according to this embodiment reads the output value of the PM sensor 55 at a first determination time td1 after elapse of a predetermined determination time period dtd since the voltage applying time. When the read output value of the PM sensor 55 is equal to or higher than a predetermined abnormality determination value Sth, it is determined that the PM sensor 55 is abnormal. The determination time period dtd is set as a time duration from the voltage applying time to the time when the reference deposition amount of PM reaches a predetermined first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1.

There is a likelihood that conductive materials other than PM as the original detection object (e.g., extraneous substances) are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. For example, moisture included in the exhaust gas is condensed to produce condensed water in the exhaust passage 5. The condensed water may enter the PM sensor 55 and may be trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552. In one example, the exhaust passage may be provided with a selective reduction NOx catalyst and a urea addition valve. The selective reduction NOx catalyst denotes a catalyst that uses ammonia as a reducing agent to reduce NOx in the exhaust gas. The urea addition valve is operated to add urea water for producing ammonia as the reducing agent to the exhaust gas. In a configuration that this urea addition valve is placed upstream of the PM sensor 55 in the exhaust passage 5, urea (e.g., urea deposit) precipitating from urea water may be trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. Such condensed water and urea deposit are not the original detection object of the PM sensor 55 and should thus be regarded as extraneous substances.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, part of PM included in the exhaust gas adheres to the wall surface of the exhaust passage 5 and various structures provided in the exhaust passage 5 such as the downstream-side end face of the filter 51 and the oxidation catalyst 50 (hereinafter referred to as “exhaust system structures”). The following phenomenon has also be found: PM once adhering to the wall surface of the exhaust passage 5 and the exhaust system structures and then falling off from the wall surface and the exhaust system structures (hereinafter referred to as “fall-off PM”) may reach the PM sensor 55 and may be trapped between the electrodes 551 and 652. The original detection object of the PM sensor 55 is ordinary PM that is included in the exhaust gas discharged from the internal combustion engine 1 and reaches the PM sensor 55 without adhering to the wall surface of the exhaust passage 5 and the exhaust system structures. In other words, the fall-off PM is not the original detection object of the PM sensor 55. Accordingly, the fall-off PM is also a kind of extraneous substance, like the condensed water and the urea deposit described above.

Even in the normal state of the filter 51, such extraneous substances are likely to be trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. The following describes the effects of such extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 on the output value of the PM sensor 55 with reference to FIG. 5. The upper graph of FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating variations in output value of the PM sensor 55 after the voltage applying time. In the upper graph of FIG. 5, the abscissa shows the reference deposition amount of PM after the voltage applying time, and the ordinate shows the output value of the PM sensor 55. In the upper graph of FIG. 5, a curve L3 shows a variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 in the failed state of the filter 51. More specifically, the curve L3 shows a variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 in the case where the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is gradually increased by trapping the ordinary PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. In the upper graph of FIG. 5, a curve L4, on the other hand, shows a variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 in the normal state of the filter 51. More specifically, the curve L4 shows a variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 in the case where the extraneous substances as well as the ordinary PM is trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. The lower graph of FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating variations in sensor output change rate of the PM sensor 55 after the voltage applying time. In the lower graph of FIG. 5, the abscissa shows the reference deposition amount of PM after the voltage applying time, and the ordinate shows the sensor output change rate. In the lower graph of FIG. 5, a curve L5 shows a variation in sensor output change rate corresponding to the variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 shown by the curve L3 in the upper graph of FIG. 5. In the lower graph of FIG. 5, a curve L6 shows a variation in sensor output change rate corresponding to the variation in output value of the PM sensor 56 shown by the curve L4 in the upper graph of FIG. 5.

When the extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55, the trapped extraneous substances establish electrical continuity between the electrodes 551 and 552 and thereby decrease the resistance value between the electrodes 551 and 552. Accordingly, in the case where the extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 before the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 reaches the effective deposition amount of PM, the output value of the PM sensor 55 starts increasing from zero at this time. In this case, as shown by the curve L4 in the upper graph of FIG. 5, the output value of the PM sensor 55 abruptly increases at the output starting time. Compared with the case where the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is gradually increased to exceed the effective deposition amount of PM, the output value of the PM sensor 55 drastically increases immediately after the output starting time in this case. As a result, the output value of the PM sensor 55 is likely to become larger than the abnormality determination value Sth at the first determination time td1, despite that the filter 51 is actually normal.

Accordingly, in the case where the extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 in a time period from the voltage applying time to the first determination time td1, in the process of filter abnormality detection using the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the first determination time td1, there is a likelihood of wrong diagnosis that the filter 51 is abnormal, despite that the filter 51 is actually normal.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the output signal of the PM sensor 55 after the voltage applying time is continuously monitored by the monitor unit 101 of the ECU 10. The reference deposition amount of PM after the voltage applying time is also continuously estimated by the ECU 10. The procedure of this embodiment compares the sensor output change rate after the voltage applying time calculated from the output value of the PM sensor and the estimated reference deposition amount of PM with a predetermined determination change rate and determines whether filter abnormality diagnosis using the output value of the PM sensor 55 is to be performed or not. The determination change rate herein is a threshold value for distinguishing whether the increase in output value of the PM sensor 55 is to be attributed to the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 or is to be attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552. In the lower graph of FIG. 5, this determination change rate is expressed as Rth.

As described above, in the case where the extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55, the output value of the PM sensor 55 abruptly increases, compared with the case where the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is gradually increased by trapping PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. Accordingly, as shown by the curve L6 in the lower graph of FIG. 5, the sensor output change rate at the time when the extraneous substances are trapped (i.e., sensor output change rate at the output starting time in the curve L6) in the case where the extraneous substances are trapped becomes higher than the sensor output change rate in the case where the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is gradually increased. In other words, when the sensor output change rate is drastically increased after the voltage applying time, it is determinable that there is a high possibility that the extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. In this case, the procedure accordingly determines that the filter diagnosis process of diagnosing an abnormality of the filter 51 based on the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the first determination time td1 is not to be performed.

Even in the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is gradually varied by the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552, the sensor output change rate is not consistently constant. As described above, the larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 provides the higher rate of increase in output value of the PM sensor 55 relative to the increase in deposition amount of PM. In general, the amount of PM actually depositing between the electrodes 551 and 552 increases with an increase in reference deposition amount of PM. Accordingly, as shown by the curve L5 in the lower graph of FIG. 5, the sensor output change rate gradually increases with an increase in reference deposition amount of PM even when substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552.

At a time close to the first determination time td1, there is accordingly a large deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551. The sensor output change rate in the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is varied by increasing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is thus likely to become comparable to the sensor output change rate in the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is varied by trapping the extraneous substances between the electrodes 551 and 552. Accordingly, as shown by the curve L5 in the lower graph of FIG. 5, at the time close to the first determination time td1, even when substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552, the sensor output change rate in the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is varied by increasing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is likely to exceed the determination change rate Rth. In this case, it is determined that the filter diagnosis process is not to be performed, despite that substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. As a result, as shown by the curve L3 in the upper graph of FIG. 5, a failure of the filter 51 is not detectable despite a variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 that indicates a failure of the filter 51.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, a time when the reference deposition amount of PM reaches a predetermined second determination PM deposition amount Qpme2 that is less than the first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1 after the voltage applying time is specified as a second determination time td2, as shown in FIG. 5. The procedure determines whether the filter diagnosis process is to be performed or not, based on the sensor output change rate in a time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2.

It is expected that the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2 is less than the deposition amount of PM after the second determination time td2. In this time period, it is thus distinguishable whether the increase in output value of the PM sensor 55 is to be attributed to the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 or is to be attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552, with high accuracy based on the sensor output change rate. In other words, when the sensor output change rate becomes higher than the determination change rate Rth in this time period, it is determinable that there is a high possibility that extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552. Accordingly, in the case where the sensor output change rate becomes higher than the determination change rate Rth in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2, the procedure of the embodiment determines that the filter diagnosis process is not to be performed. This reduces wrong diagnosis of an abnormality of the filter 51 due to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55, despite that the filter 51 is actually normal. This results in improving the accuracy of abnormality diagnosis of the filter 51 using the output value of the PM sensor 55.

In the case where the sensor output change rate does not become higher than the determination change rate Rth in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2, on the other hand, it is determinable that there is a high possibility that substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552. It is also expected that the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 is relatively large after the second determination time td2. After the second determination time td2, it is accordingly difficult to distinguish whether the increase in output value of the PM sensor 55 is to be attributed to the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 or is to be attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552, with high accuracy based on the sensor output change rate. When the sensor output change rate does not become higher than the determination change rate Rth in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2, the procedure of this embodiment performs the filter diagnosis process based on the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the first determination time td1, irrespective of the sensor output change rate after the second determination time td2. This suppresses execution of abnormality diagnosis of the filter 51 from being unnecessarily prohibited. This results in suppressing reduction of the execution frequency of abnormality diagnosis of the filter 51 beyond necessity.

The following describes a flow of filter abnormality diagnosis of the embodiment with reference to FIG. 6. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of filter abnormality diagnosis of the embodiment. This flow is performed by the ECU 10 on satisfaction of predetermined filter diagnosis preliminary conditions. The filter diagnosis preliminary conditions herein are conditions to perform a sensor recovery process prior to the filter diagnosis process. The filter diagnosis preliminary conditions are set to necessarily and sufficiently ensure the execution frequency of the filter diagnosis process. The filter diagnosis preliminary conditions may be, for example, that the internal combustion engine 1 is in the state of steady operation and that a predetermined time period has elapsed since previous execution of the filter diagnosis process or that a predefined time period has elapsed since a current start of operation of the internal combustion engine 1. In an application that the PM sensor 55 is provided with an SCU, this flow may be performed by the SCU.

This flow first determines whether the PM sensor 55 is normal at S101. According to this embodiment, a flow of failure diagnosis of the PM sensor 55 is performed as a separate routine from this flow, and the result of failure diagnosis is stored in the ECU 10. At S101, the flow reads the result of failure diagnosis of the PM sensor 55 stored in the ECU 10. When the result of diagnosis indicating a failure of the PM sensor 55 is stored in the ECU 10, a negative answer is provided at S101. In this case, the flow is terminated. When the result of diagnosis indicating a failure of the PM sensor 55 is not stored in the ECU 10, on the other hand, an affirmative answer is provided at S101. In this case, the flow proceeds to the process of S102. Any of known techniques may be employed for failure diagnosis of the PM sensor 55.

At S102, the sensor recovery process is performed. The sensor recovery process supplies electric power from the power source 60 to the heater 555 and controls the temperature of the sensor element 553 to a temperature that allows for oxidation of PM. At S102, the supply of electric power to the heater 555 is continued until elapse of a predetermined sensor recovery time since the start of power supply. The sensor recovery time may be a fixed value determined in advance by experiment or the like as a sufficient time duration for removal of PM depositing between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. The sensor recovery time may be set, based on an estimated deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 at the start of the sensor recovery process. When the sensor recovery time has elapsed since the start of supply of electric power to the heater 555, the supply of electric power from the power source 60 to the heater 555 is stopped, so that the sensor recovery process is completed. The deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 is approximately zero at the time when the sensor recovery process is completed.

The flow subsequently performs the process of S103. At S103, the flow starts application of a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. This accelerates trapping PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, at the start of application of a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55, the monitor unit 101 of the ECU 10 may start monitoring the output value of the PM sensor 55. A cooling time period for cooling down the electrodes 551 and 552 may be provided between completion of the sensor recovery process and start of applying a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55, as described above. The application start time of a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 may not be necessarily simultaneous with the monitor start time of the output value of the PM sensor 55 by the monitor unit 101 of the ECU 10.

At S104, the flow subsequently performs a determination process of determining whether execution of the filter diagnosis process is to be prohibited. The following describes a flow of the determination process of the embodiment with reference to FIG. 7. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the flow of the determination process of the embodiment. This flow is repeatedly performed by the ECU 10 after start of application of a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. In the application that the PM sensor 55 is provided with an SCU, this flow may also be performed by the SCU.

At S201, the flow calculates a reference deposition amount of PM Qpme at the current moment. The reference deposition amount of PM Qpme is calculated, based on the operating conditions of the internal combustion engine 1 and the deposition amount of PM on the filter 51 on the assumption that the filter 51 is in the reference failure state. The deposition amount of PM on the filter 51 on the assumption that the filter 51 is in the reference failure state may be calculated by estimating the amount of PM trapped by the filter 51 on the assumption that the filter 51 is in the reference failure state and the removal amount of PM oxidized by increasing the temperature of the exhaust gas to be removed from the filter 51 and integrating these estimated values.

At S202, the flow subsequently obtains an output value Sout of the PM sensor 55 at the current moment. At S203, the flow then calculates a sensor output change rate Rsout of the PM sensor 55. In this calculation, the reference deposition amount of PM calculated at S201 in a previous cycle of this flow is defined as a first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1, and the reference deposition amount of PM calculated at S201 in a current cycle of this flow is defined as a second determination PM deposition amount Qpme2. The output value of the PM sensor obtained at S202 in the previous cycle of this flow is defined as a first output value Sout1, and the output value of the PM sensor obtained at S202 in the current cycle of this flow is defined as a second output value Sout2. At S203, the sensor output change rate Rsout is calculated according to Equation (1) given below: Rsout=(Sout2·Sout1)/(Qpme2·Qpme1)  (1)

The sensor output change rate Rsout is thus calculated as a ratio of the difference between the output values of the PM sensor at two different times of execution of this flow to the difference between the reference deposition amounts of PM at the two different times.

At S204, the flow subsequently determines whether the sensor output change rate Rsout calculated at S203 is higher than a determination change rate Rth. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the determination change rate Rth may be specified in advance by experiment or the like and is stored in the ECU 10. In the case of an affirmative answer at S204, there is a high possibility that extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. In this case, the flow determines that the filter diagnosis process is not to be performed based on the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the first determination time td1. Accordingly, in the case of an affirmative answer at S204, the flow sets a diagnosis prohibition flag ON at S205. In the case of a negative answer at S204, on the other hand, i.e, in the case where the sensor output change rate Rsout calculated at S203 is equal to or lower than the determination change rate Rth, there is a high possibility that substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 at the current moment. In this case, the flow sets the diagnosis prohibition flag OFF at S206.

The description is referred back to the flow of filter abnormality diagnosis shown in FIG. 6. This flow performs the process of S105 after the process of S104. At S105, the flow determines whether the diagnosis prohibition flag is set ON by the determination process performed at S104. In the case of a negative answer at S105, i.e., when the diagnosis prohibition flag is OFF, the flow proceeds to the process of S106. At S106, the flow determines whether the current reference deposition amount of PM Qpme is equal to or larger than the predetermined second determination PM deposition amount Qpme2. This determines whether the time comes to the second determination time td2. In the case of a negative answer at S106, i.e., when the reference deposition amount of PM Qpme has not yet reached or exceeded the second determination PM deposition amount Qpme2, the determination process is performed again at S104.

In the case of an affirmative answer at S106, on the other hand, it is determined that the reference deposition amount of PM Qpme has reached or exceeded the second determination PM deposition amount Qpme2 without setting the diagnosis prohibition flag ON in the determination process of S104 after the voltage applying time. In other words, it is determined that substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 in a time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2. Accordingly, in this case, the flow determines that the filter diagnosis process is to be performed based on the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the first determination time td1. At S107, the flow subsequently determines whether the current reference deposition amount of PM Qpme is equal to or larger than the first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1. This determines whether the time comes to the first determination time td1 after elapse of the determination time period dtd since the voltage applying time. The process of S107 is repeatedly performed until an affirmative answer is provided at S107.

In the case of an affirmative answer at S107, the flow subsequently performs the filter diagnosis process at S108. More specifically, the filter diagnosis process determines whether the output value Sout of the PM sensor 55 is equal to or larger than the abnormality determination value Sth when the reference deposition amount of PM Qpme has reached the first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1. In the case of an affirmative answer at S108, the flow proceeds to S109 to determine that the filter 51 is abnormal. In the case of a negative answer at S108, on the other hand, the flow proceeds to S110 to determine that the filter 51 has no abnormality but is normal. After determining that the filter 51 is abnormal at S109 or determining that the filter 51 is normal at S110, the flow stops application of a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 at S111.

In the case of an affirmative answer at S105, on the other hand, the flow subsequently stops application of a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 at S111. This accordingly stops application of a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 without performing the filter diagnosis process. In the case of an affirmative answer at S105, it is, however, not necessarily required to stop application of a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 immediately. Even in the case of an affirmative answer at S105, a modification may continue application of a voltage to the electrodes 551 and 552 until the reference deposition amount of PM Qpme reaches the first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1. This modification also determines that the filter diagnosis process is not to be performed based on the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the time when the reference deposition amount of PM Qpme reaches the first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1. In the case of an affirmative answer at S105, another modification may perform the sensor recovery process to remove the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 and subsequently perform the process of and after S103 again.

The flow of filter abnormality diagnosis described above determines that the filter diagnosis process is not to be performed in the case where extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2. In the case where substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2, the flow determines that the filter diagnosis process is to be performed, irrespective of the sensor output change rate after the second determination time td2.

In one embodiment, referred to as Embodiment 2, a filter diagnosis process by a procedure similar to that of the previously discussed Embodiment 1 may be performed. More specifically, the time when the reference deposition amount of PM reaches the predetermined first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1 after the voltage applying time is defined as the first determination time td1. It is determined that the PM sensor 55 is abnormal when the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the first determination time td1 is equal to or larger than the predetermined abnormality determination value Sth. Embodiment 2, however, employs a procedure different from that of Embodiment 1, to determine whether the filter diagnosis process is to be performed or not may be utilized.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating variations in output value of the PM sensor 55 and variations in sensor output change rate after the voltage applying time, like FIG. 5 described above. Curves L3 to L6 in FIG. 8 show variations in output value of the PM sensor 55 and variations in sensor output change rate, similar to the curves L3 to L6 in FIG. 5. Like FIG. 5, td1 in FIG. 8 indicates a first determination time, and td2 in FIG. 8 indicates a second determination time. A determination output value Sout0 represents the output value of the PM sensor 55 when the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is a predetermined second determination PM deposition amount Qpme2 that is less than a first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1. When the output value of the PM sensor 55 reaches the determination output value Sout0 in a time period from the voltage applying time to the first determination time td1 as shown in FIG. 8, the time at which the output value of the PM sensor 55 reaches the determination output value Sout0 is defined as the second determination time td2.

In the configuration that this time is defined as the second determination time td2, there is a difference between the sensor output change rates from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2 in the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is increased by gradually increasing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 562 and in the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is increased by trapping extraneous substances between the electrodes 551 and 552, as shown in the lower graph of FIG. 8. More specifically, in the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is increased by trapping extraneous substances between the electrodes 551 and 552, as shown by the curve L6 in the lower graph of FIG. 8, there is a time duration with a relatively high sensor output change rate in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2. In the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is increased by gradually increasing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552, on the other hand, as shown by the curve L5 in the lower graph of FIG. 8, the sensor output change rate has a relatively small variation in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2. It is thus distinguishable whether the increase in output value of the PM sensor 55 is to be attributed to the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 or is to be attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552, with high accuracy based on the sensor output change rate in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2.

In the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 reaches the determination output value Sout0 by gradually increasing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552, the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is relatively large after that (after the second determination time td2). This results in increasing the sensor output change rate as shown by the curve L5 in the lower graph of FIG. 8. After the second determination time td2, it is accordingly difficult to distinguish whether the increase in output value of the PM sensor 55 is to be attributed to the gradual increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 or is to be attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552, with high accuracy based on the sensor output change rate.

According to this embodiment, it is also determined that the filter diagnosis process is not to be performed in the case where the sensor output change rate becomes higher than the determination change rate Rth in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2. In the case where the sensor output change rate does not become higher than the determination change rate Rth in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2, on the other hand, the filter diagnosis process is to be performed based on the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the first determination time td1, irrespective of the second output change rate after the second determination time td2. This results in improving the accuracy of abnormality diagnosis of the filter 51 using the output value of the PM sensor 55. This also suppresses execution of abnormality diagnosis of the filter 51 from being unnecessarily prohibited.

In some cases, the output value of the PM sensor 55 may not reach the determination output value Sout0 in the time period from the voltage applying time to the first determination time td1. In such cases, however, the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the first determination time td1 is inevitably smaller than the abnormality determination value Sth. Accordingly, it is determined that the filter 51 is normal, irrespective of the sensor output change rate in the time period from the voltage applying time to the first determination time td1.

The following describes a flow of filter abnormality diagnosis of this embodiment with reference to FIG. 9. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the flow of filter abnormality diagnosis of the embodiment. This flow is performed by the ECU 10 on satisfaction of predetermined filter diagnosis preliminary conditions. In an application that the PM sensor 55 is provided with an SCU, this flow may be performed by the SCU. The steps in this flow at which the like processes to those of the steps of FIG. 6 are performed are expressed by the like step numbers and are not specifically described.

In the case of a negative answer at S105, the flow proceeds to the process of S306. At S306, the flow determines whether the current output value Sout of the PM sensor 55 is equal to or larger than a predetermined determination output value Sout0. This determines whether the time comes to the second determination time td2. In the case of an affirmative answer at S306, it is determined that the output value Sout of the PM sensor 55 has reached the determination output value Sout0 without setting the diagnosis prohibition flag ON in the determination process of S104 after the voltage applying time. In other words, it is determined that substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2. Accordingly, in this case, it is determined that the filter diagnosis process is to be performed based on the output value of the PM sensor 55 at the first determination time td1. The flow subsequently proceeds to the process of S107.

In the case of a negative answer at S306, i.e., when the output value Sout of the PM sensor 55 has not yet reached the determination output value Sout0, on the other hand, the flow proceeds to the process of S307. At S307, the flow determines whether the current reference deposition amount of PM Qpme is equal to or larger than the first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1, like S107. This determines whether the time comes to the first determination time td1 after elapse of the determination time period dtd since the voltage applying time. In the case of an affirmative answer at S307, the time comes to the first determination time td1 while the output value Sout of the PM sensor 55 has not yet reached the determination output value Sout0. Accordingly, in this case, the flow subsequently determines that the filter 51 has no abnormality but is normal at S110. In the case of a negative answer at S307, i.e., when the reference deposition amount of PM Qpme has not yet reached the first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1, on the other hand, the determination process is performed again at S104.

The above flow of filter abnormality diagnosis determines that the filter diagnosis process is not to be performed, in the case where extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2 before the first determination time td1. The flow of filter abnormality diagnosis determines that the filter diagnosis process is to be performed irrespective of the sensor output change rate after the second determination time td2, on the other hand, in the case where substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2 before the first determination time td1.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the PM sensor 55 is configured to generate the output value that reflects the value of electric current flowing between the electrodes 551 and 552. The output value of the PM sensor 55 accordingly increases with an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. According to a modification, the PM sensor 55 may be configured to generate an output value that reflects the resistance value between the electrodes 551 and 552. In this modification, the output value of the PM sensor 55 decreases with an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. In this modification, at S203 in the flow of determination process shown in FIG. 7 to determine whether execution of the filter diagnosis process is to be prohibited or not, the sensor output change rate Rsout is calculated according to Equation (2) given below: Rsout=(Sout1·Sout2)/(Qpme2·Qpme1)  (2)

In the PM sensor 55 configured to have the output characteristic that the output value of the PM sensor 55 decreases with an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552, the larger deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 provides the higher rate of decrease in output value of the PM sensor 55 relative to the increase in deposition amount of PM. Accordingly, in this modification, the sensor output change rate gradually increases with an increase in reference deposition amount of PM even when substantially no extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, as shown in the lower graphs of FIGS. 5 and 8, the determination change rate Rth is set to the fixed value irrespective of the reference deposition amount of PM. According to a modification, the determination change rate Rth may be set to increase gradually or stepwise with an increase in reference deposition amount of PM. Setting the determination change rate Rth in this way makes the sensor output change rate unlikely to exceed the determination change rate Rth even when the sensor output change rate gradually increases with an increase in deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552. Even in this modification, however, at a time close to the first determination time td1, a large amount of PM deposits between the electrodes 551 and 552, so that the sensor output change rate in the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is varied by increasing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is likely to exceed the determination change rate Rth. A modification of this procedure thus determines whether the filter diagnosis process is to be performed or not, based on the sensor output change rate in the time period from the voltage applying time to the second determination time td2, as described above.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the sensor output change rate Rsout is calculated as the parameter used for filter abnormality diagnosis. According to a modification, a value correlated with the sensor output change rate may be used instead as the parameter. For example, a differential between a first output difference and a second output difference or a ratio of the first output difference to the second output difference may be used as the parameter of abnormality diagnosis. The first output difference denotes a difference between the first determination PM deposition amount Qpme1 and the first output value Sout1 of the PM sensor 55, which are used for calculation of the sensor output change rate Rsout in the flow of determination process shown in FIG. 7. The second output difference denotes a difference between the second determination PM deposition amount Qpme2 and the second output value Sout2 of the PM sensor 55, which are used for calculation of the sensor output change rate Rsout.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the reference deposition amount of PM is the estimated value on the assumption that the filter 51 is in the reference failure state. According to a modification, the reference deposition amount of PM may be an estimated value on the assumption that the filter 51 is not provided in the exhaust passage 5. In this modification, the first determination PM deposition amount used to specify the determination time period dtd and the abnormality determination value to be compared with the output value of the PM sensor 55 in the filter diagnosis process may be set on the premise that the reference deposition amount of PM is the estimated value on the assumption that the filter 51 is not provided in the exhaust passage 5.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, as shown in FIG. 10, a differential pressure sensor 56 may be provided in the exhaust passage 5. The differential pressure sensor 56 outputs an electric signal corresponding to a difference in exhaust pressure between upstream and downstream of the filter 51. Like the output signals of the other sensors, the output signal of the differential pressure sensor 56 is input into the ECU 10. At the time of completion of the filter recovery process, i.e., in the state that substantially no PM deposits on the filter 51, the output value of the differential pressure sensor 56 is correlated with the state of the filter 51 to some extent. More specifically, in the fixed operating conditions of the internal combustion engine 1, i.e., at the fixed flow rate of exhaust gas flowing into the filter 51, the difference in exhaust pressure between upstream and downstream of the filter 51 decreases with an increase in degree of deterioration of the filter 51. The higher degree of deterioration of the filter 51 accordingly provides the smaller output value of the differential pressure sensor 56. In the configuration that the differential pressure sensor 56 is provided in the exhaust passage 5, the state of the filter 51 may be estimated, based on the output value of the differential pressure sensor 56 at the time of completion of the filter recovery process. It may be, however, difficult to estimate the state of the filter 51 with high accuracy using only the output value of the differential pressure sensor 56. In the configuration with the differential pressure sensor 56, there may be a need for filter abnormality diagnosis using the output value of the PM sensor as described in embodiments of the present disclosure.

In the configuration of FIG. 10, the state of the filter 51 may be estimated, based on the output value of the differential pressure sensor 56 at the time of completion of the filter recovery process. A deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 that is estimated on the assumption that the filter 51 is in this estimated state defined as a reference state may be specified as the reference deposition amount of PM. This allows for estimation of the reference deposition amount of PM on the assumption that the state of the filter 51 is close to the actual state to some extent. This provides the higher correlation between the reference deposition amount of PM and the output value of the PM sensor 55 in the case where the output value of the PM sensor 55 is varied by gradually increasing the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55. This provides a more noticeable difference between the variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 attributed to the gradual increase of the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 and the variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 attributed to the extraneous substances trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552. Accordingly, this may increase the accuracy of differentiation based on their sensor output change rates as described above in embodiments of the present disclosure.

As described above, in general, the reference deposition amount of PM gradually increases with time after the voltage applying time. When the abscissa is changed to the time elapsed since the voltage applying time in the upper graphs of FIGS. 5 and 8, the output value of the PM sensor 55 is expected to vary in the same tendencies as those shown in FIGS. 5 and 8. In Embodiments 1 and 2 described above, the variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 per unit time may thus be specified as the sensor output change rate. In this modification, the sensor output change rate at the time when extraneous substances are trapped between the electrodes 551 and 552 of the PM sensor 55 also becomes higher than the sensor output change rate in the case where the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes 551 and 552 is gradually increased. Accordingly, this sensor output change rate may be used similarly to the variation in output value of the PM sensor 55 per unit increase of the reference deposition amount of PM described above.

While the present disclosure has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   1 internal combustion engine -   4 intake passage -   5 exhaust passage -   50 oxidation catalyst -   51 particulate filter (filter) -   55 PM sensor -   550 insulator -   551, 552 electrodes -   553 sensor element -   554 ammeter -   555 heater -   556 cover -   557 through hole -   56 differential pressure sensor -   60 power source -   10 ECU 

What is claimed is:
 1. An abnormality diagnosis apparatus for a particulate filter, the abnormality diagnosis apparatus comprising: a particulate matter (PM) sensor comprising a pair of electrodes, the PM sensor being configured to output a value corresponding to a deposition amount of PM between the pair of electrodes; a controller comprising at least one processor configured to perform a sensor recovery process and a filter diagnosis process, the sensor recovery process comprising a process of removing PM depositing between the electrodes of the PM sensor, and the filter diagnosis process comprising a process of diagnosing an abnormality of the particulate filter based on an output value of the PM sensor at a predetermined first determination time after a predetermined PM deposition restart time; and a monitor unit that is configured to monitor an output value of the PM sensor after the PM deposition restart time, wherein an estimated value of the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor during an assumed predetermined reference state is specified as a reference deposition amount of PM, wherein a variation in an output value of the PM sensor monitored by the monitor unit per unit increase in the reference deposition amount of PM, or a variation in output value of the PM sensor monitored by the monitor unit per unit time, is specified as a sensor output change rate, wherein when the sensor output change rate becomes higher than a predetermined determination change rate in a time period from the PM deposition restart time to a predetermined second determination time prior to the predetermined first determination time, the filter diagnosis process by the controller is not performed, and wherein when the sensor output change rate does not become higher than the predetermined determination change rate in the time period from the PM deposition restart time to the predetermined second determination time, the filter diagnosis process by the controller is performed irrespective of the sensor output change rate after the predetermined second determination time.
 2. An abnormality diagnosis apparatus for a particulate filter, the abnormality diagnosis apparatus comprising: a particulate matter (PM) sensor comprising a pair of electrodes, the PM sensor being configured to output a value corresponding to a deposition amount of PM between the pair of electrodes; a controller comprising at least one processor configured to perform a sensor recovery process and a filter diagnosis process, the sensor recovery process comprising a process of removing PM depositing between the electrodes of the PM sensor, and the filter diagnosis process comprising a process of diagnosing an abnormality of the particulate filter based on an output value of the PM sensor at a predetermined first determination time after a predetermined PM deposition restart time; a monitor unit that is configured to monitor an output value of the PM sensor after the PM deposition restart time; and a differential pressure sensor configured to output a value corresponding to a difference in exhaust pressure upstream and downstream of the particulate filter in an exhaust passage, wherein the controller is further configured to perform a filter recovery process, the filter recovery process comprising a process of removing PM depositing on the particulate filter, and wherein a state of the particulate filter is estimated based on an output value of the differential pressure sensor at a time of completion of the filter recovery process performed by the controller prior to execution of the sensor recovery process by the controller, and the reference deposition amount of PM is estimated on the assumption that the particulate filter is in an estimated state specified as a reference state.
 3. An abnormality diagnosis method for a particulate filter, the method comprising: outputting a value corresponding to a deposition amount of PM between a pair of electrodes of a particulate matter (PM) sensor; performing, by a controller comprising at least one processor, a sensor recovery process and a filter diagnosis process, the sensor recovery process comprising a process of removing PM depositing between the electrodes of the PM sensor, and the filter diagnosis process comprising a process of diagnosing an abnormality of the particulate filter based on an output value of the PM sensor at a predetermined first determination time after a predetermined PM deposition restart time; and monitoring an output value of the PM sensor, by a monitor unit, after the PM deposition restart time, wherein an estimated value of the deposition amount of PM between the electrodes of the PM sensor during an assumed predetermined reference state is specified as a reference deposition amount of PM, wherein a variation in an output value of the PM sensor monitored by the monitor unit per unit increase in the reference deposition amount of PM, or a variation in output value of the PM sensor monitored by the monitor unit per unit time, is specified as a sensor output change rate, wherein when the sensor output change rate becomes higher than a predetermined determination change rate in a time period from the PM deposition restart time to a predetermined second determination time prior to the predetermined first determination time, the filter diagnosis process by the controller is not performed, and wherein when the sensor output change rate does not become higher than the predetermined determination change rate in the time period from the PM deposition restart time to the predetermined second determination time, the filter diagnosis process by the controller is performed irrespective of the sensor output change rate after the second determination time.
 4. An abnormality diagnosis method for a particulate filter, the method comprising: outputting a value corresponding to a deposition amount of PM between a pair of electrodes of a particulate matter (PM) sensor; performing, by a controller comprising at least one processor, a sensor recovery process and a filter diagnosis process, the sensor recovery process comprising a process of removing PM depositing between the electrodes of the PM sensor, and the filter diagnosis process comprising a process of diagnosing an abnormality of the particulate filter based on an output value of the PM sensor at a predetermined first determination time after a predetermined PM deposition restart time; monitoring an output value of the PM sensor, by a monitor unit, after the PM deposition restart time; outputting, by a differential pressure sensor, a value corresponding to a difference in exhaust pressure upstream and downstream of the particulate filter in an exhaust passage; and performing, by the controller, a filter recovery process, the filter recovery process comprising a process of removing PM depositing on the particulate filter, wherein a state of the particulate filter is estimated based on an output value of the differential pressure sensor at a time of completion of the filter recovery process performed by the controller prior to execution of the sensor recovery process by the controller, and the reference deposition amount of PM is estimated on the assumption that the particulate filter is in an estimated state specified as a reference state. 